Vehicle Charging Stations

We are in the midst of an electrically powered vehicle revolution! Purely electric powered vehicles have so many performance, maintenance and environmental advantages over conventional gas powered vehicles, they are destined to dominate the streets of the future. These type vehicles have come a long way over the last decades, with the concerns about limited range, long charging times, poor performance becoming a thing of the past.

While most newer EV's now have a range of over 200 miles, for trips exceeding the batteries range, these EV's have capabilities for relatively fast charging times at the constantly expanding public quick charging stations. Of course, for most of our normal driving needs, overnight charging at our homes is the chief charging location. this is where we at RF-Electric can help, by providing the necessary Equipment and installation for your EV.

There are many factors to consider when planning a charger installations. For this reason, it is important for customers to use only a qualified electrical contractor.

RF-Electric will ask for all the pertinent information about the particular EV, and set up a site visit with the customer so we provide a detailed installation plan and provide estimated costs for the work.

The EV Revolution

We are in the midst of an electrically powered vehicle revolution! Purely electric powered vehicles have so many performance, maintenance and environmental advantages over conventional gas powered vehicles, they are destined to dominate the streets of the future. These type of vehicles have come a long way over the last decades, with the concerns about limited range, long charging times, poor performance becoming a thing of the past.

General EV Charging

There are three general types of charging for EV's, Home Charging, Destination Charging and charging stations. Unique to Tesla vehicles, there are Tesla Supercharger stations which are generally located along highways. These are intended for longer trips that exceed the range available of a typical battery. They provide a substantially lower charging time than a typical charging station.

Below is a short description for each system.

Home charging, is the chief charging location for most of our normal driving needs. This is where we at RF-Electric can help, by providing the necessary equipment and installation for your EV home charging system. There are many factors to consider when planning this installation. For this reason, it is important for customers to use only a qualified electrical contractor. We ask for all the pertinent information about your EV, set up a site visit with you, so we can provide a detailed installation plan and estimated cost for the work.

Public Charging Stations, are provided at many locations along highways and streets, like traditional gas stations. These Charging Stations are becoming more abundant as more EV's are coming off the assembly lines. These stations generally provide level-2 charges which provide faster charging times than can be provided from the average residential electrical service.

Destination charging, is provided at many hotels, restaurants, shopping centers, parking lots and resorts to make charging when you arrive at your destination as simple as charging at home. Destination chargers provide similar charging times as a typical charging station.

Public Supercharging Stations, are unique to Tesla vehicles. They provide a very high rate of charge compared to standard public level-2 chargers. While all Tesla vehicles have a range of over 215 miles, for trips exceeding this range, Tesla Supercharging enables a charge-up in 20 to 40 minutes. This network of Tesla superchargers is constantly growing along our highways every year.

By far, Tesla Motors has been a leader in paving the way to an all-electric vehicle powered future. Tesla Motors began producing its first all-electric vehicle, the Roadster in 2008. It was the first truly all-electric sports car ever made. The research and development of that car paved the way to today's highly reliable and practical Tesla Model-s, Model-x, and their soon to be massively produced Model-3. This technology developed by Tesla was shared with and is being used by automakers all around the world!

As with all EV's, there are several Home Charging options for Tesla EV's. the main difference in these systems is the rate at which they will charge the car. The slowest rate of charge option is from a basic 110-volt outlet providing about six driving miles per hour of charging. The highest rate of charge option is with a Tesla wall connector providing about thirty-four driving miles per hour of charging. the most common types of charging systems are listed below.

240-volt / 30-amp – system requires a NEMA 14-30 receptacle fed with a 240-volt / 30-amp circuit. This provides about 16-driving miles per hour of charging

240-volt / 50-amp – system requires a NEMA 14-50 receptacle fed with a 240-volt / 50-amp circuit. This provides about 28-driving miles per hour of charging

240-volt / 60-amp – system requires the use of a Tesla Wall Connector fed with a 240-volt / 60-amp circuit. This provides about 34-driving miles per hour of charging. The wall connector also has other advantages such as charging more than one car, outdoor installation and a communication link with the car to provide optimal charging performance.

About RF-Electric

RF Electric is a family-run, South Plainfield based, independent contracting company. RF has been satisfying customers since 1986. Our motto is "Dependable, Clean, Expert Service." We live up to that claim every day.